Monday, January 5, 2009

I'm Not Pregnant

A thin 16 year old female cross country runner presents to student health because she hasn't had a menstrual period in several months. She had menarche at around 14, but her periods have been irregular. She fervently denies any possibility of being pregnant; she is not sexually active. She has no significant past medical history. On review of systems, she notes feeling cold and dizzy at times. She drinks a great deal of caffeine but eats very little. She is 163 cm (64 inches) tall and weighs 43 kg.

Challenge: Two legs of a triad have been described here. What's the third?

3 comments:

CodeDog said...

Female Athlete Triad:
Low Energy Availability: She eats very little and exercises a lot.
The feelings of cold and dizziness are from the low energy availability.
Amenorrhea: She has stopped menstruating.
Osteoporosis:(The missing one) She should have a bone density scan done.

Alex said...

being underweight can cause amennorhea from lack of hormone production (i think aromatase?)

Craig said...

yep
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I’m Not Pregnant

This is the female athlete’s triad of an eating disorder, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis.

Sources: UpToDate.